Congress Responsible For Infiltration Crisis: Himanta Biswa Sarma

Guwahati: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on Congress over the Partition legacy in the country in which, he claimed, the then leadership had not anticipated its long term consequences, of which, he said, the nation, and specifically Assam, continues to bear the brunt.

At a press conference, Sarma claimed that at the time India achieved Independence and the subcontinent was partitioned in 1947, more consideration should have been formed on the potential of massive cross-border migration after the establishment of Pakistan. In his view, the lack of an all-encompassing approach to the issues of demographic and border at the time has led to the continued problems that have been faced several decades later.

The Chief Minister claimed his government is intensifying its efforts to identify and deport illegal immigrants, and claimed that ground efforts have gathered pace over the last few months. He argued that about 30 people who were considered illegal immigrants were being deported on a daily basis. Sarma also stated that information about these kinds of operations is constantly posted to social media and that an organized strategy exists to enhance the motivation.

By highlighting the legal support of such practices, Sarma mentioned that the Supreme Court has given the mandate to the District Commissioners to take legal action in the pertinent instances. He insisted that state administration is operating within the law as they do what he termed as an aggressive stance against infiltration.

Another point that the Chief Minister brought to light was the ineffectiveness of physical border barriers, in that fencing would not completely deter illegal entry. He said that natural landscape features and porous sections still remain a challenge regardless of increased surveillance and infrastructure in the international border.

Sarma also argued that the political and territorial structures that were established during Partition were not clear enough especially in the way they tackled the demographic realities and long term migration patterns. He opined that more decisive action should have been taken then to prevent the modern-day issues concerning cross-border movement.

Blaming the Congress to have committed what he described as historical oversights, Sarma had opined that the current government is being left to clean up the results of the decisions made almost 80 years ago. He once again reiterated that the protection of the Assam demographic balance and the safeguarding of the interest of the indigenous people of the region are at the center stage of the priorities of his administration.

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